Title: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Author: Stieg Larsson
Published: 2008
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Rating: 4 of 5
Much has been written about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, especially now that it is available in paperback and the follow-up book, The Girl Who Played with Fire has been released. I’ll keep my synopsis short and sweet: This book follows Mikael Blomkvist, a magazine editor, and Lisbeth Salander, a rough-around-the-edges private investigator, as they dig into a decades-old missing woman mystery and a corporate fraud scheme.
My mother-in-law first mentioned this book to me months ago. I added the title to my list and then promptly forgot about it. Soon though, I started seeing the book everywhere – in blog posts, on bestseller lists, in articles anticipating Fire‘s release. I bumped it to the top of my list and waited in a (long) line to get a copy from my library.
I now understand the buzz. This book was pure page-turning entertainment – I felt physical pain whenever I had to set it down to do annoying things like eat, shower, and go to work. Fortunately, it was also a fast read, so I was able to speed through it and return to normal life fairly quickly.
Set in Sweden, Dragon Tattoo introduced me to an area of the world I’ve never visited before in books. One of my dearest friends grew up in Sweden and I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the country (particularly the interesting food) while comparing it to the things she has shared about her childhood. This book was certainly not a travelogue, but the occasional descriptions of the countryside and the small towns in which it was set made me want to make Sweden my next vacation destination.
In fact, this book was an absolute thriller, with some mystery thrown in for good measure. I didn’t know much about the book when I started reading (having scrupulously avoided reviews to avoid spoilers), but the translated Swedish title should have tipped me off: Men Who Hate Women. Normally, I don’t do well with books containing lots of violence or brutality, especially against women. To be honest, there were parts that were difficult for me to read (or even skim) due to the graphic descriptions. But I was so gripped by the plot that I was able to push through those sections and still enjoy the book.
If you haven’t read this one yet, I would definitely recommend it with one caveat: Please start it early in a weekend. I’d hate for you to have to use a sick day at work so you can stay home to finish it! Myself, I’m looking forward to reading Fire. While I’m waiting in my second library line to get it (139 people long!), I’ll keep myself occupied by deciding where to put the Dragon Tattoo tattoo that I won from Books on the Nightstand!
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Don’t take my word for it. Check out what others are saying about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo:
1 More Chapter – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
All About {n} – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
The Book Lady’s Blog – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
Books on the Nightstand – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo — what are you waiting for?
Literary License -The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson (a review)
The Literate Housewife Review – #186 ~ The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Old Musty Books – Stieg Larsson: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
S. Krishna’s Books – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – Stieg Larsson
I’ve heard of this book before, but didn’t know what it was about. Thank you for the review!
I have a friend who missed his plane because he was so engrossed in the book
That is hilarious, Kat!
Great review. I’m looking forward to the next two books in the series as well.